Sparks
by Semebay
Summary: Firefighter!Alfred AU. Alfred introduces Arthur to his favorite diner, and the end result is the first morning-after of many to come. Takes place after Ignition, before Burning.


"After you, good sir." Alfred bowed when he opened the door to the diner. Arthur smirked and grabbed Alfred's shoulder to drag him in.

"Don't."

"It's all fun," Alfred said. He smiled at the lady behind the counter and held up two fingers. She grabbed a couple menus and smiled while she walked them to a booth by a window. They chose opposite sides and she set the menus before them.

"Welcome," she sang, "and thank you for joining us! Have you eaten with us before?"

"All the time," Alfred answered with a grin. "Usually lunch."

"Well that would explain why I recognize you," she laughed. She moved her arms and pulled a pad of paper from her apron, and Arthur got a look at her nametag. Aimee. "Before we begin, I'd like to let you know about tonight's specials!"

Arthur picked the drink menu up from between the salt and pepper shakers as Aimee described the specials. When she finished, Alfred ordered a Bud and Arthur a Guinness, and she disappeared.

"The lemon merengue sounds good," Alfred said when he looked through the menu.

"It does," Arthur agreed. He turned a couple pages and hummed to himself. "You know what you want?"

"I do."

Arthur glanced up. Alfred had closed his menu and set it down. He leaned on the table, his arms crossed, and he stared openly at Arthur with a grin. Arthur blinked and tried not to smile.

"I'm glad you could come," Alfred said. He shrugged and looked around. "It's my favorite place."

Arthur looked around the room. The walls were a dark wood and the red booth cushions were old and worn. The customers were mostly elderly and adult couples, probably parents getting away from their kids. It was hard to describe the atmosphere, but Arthur could understand why Alfred liked the place.

"It's nice." Arthur put down his menu and closed it. "I like it."

Alfred nodded and tilted his head to smile at the table. His shoulders shook with restrained laughter, and Arthur reached across the table to touch his hand. Arthur was going to say something, but he pulled his hand back when he saw Aimee returning with their drinks.

Aimee took their orders and flitted back to the kitchen. Alfred grabbed his drink and slid it closer. "Was work good?"

"If by good you mean horribly slow and agonizing, then yes. Yes it was." Arthur chuckled. "History must be one of the most hated subjects in school."

"I think you're forgetting calculus." Alfred pointed at him. "No kid likes calculus."

"I thought you said math was your strength."

"More science." Alfred nudged Arthur's hand. "Do you wear glasses when you teach?"

Arthur laughed. "Only when I'm grading papers."

"That's something I'd like to see."

"Maybe someday."

* * *

They didn't make it past the front door of Alfred's apartment. Arthur pushed Alfred through it as soon as the door was unlocked, his hands fisted in Alfred's jacket and his lips pressed against Alfred's. Alfred grabbed him and turned so he could kick the door shut, and hit his back against the counter when Arthur tripped on a floor mat.

Arthur's hands slipped from Alfred's jacket and he grabbed the edges of the counter on either side of Alfred to keep himself from falling. "Sorry," he whispered, his heart pounding with adrenaline.

Alfred raised his eyebrows. "I'm more than okay with this."

"I'm not fucking you on a table," Arthur said bluntly.

"Didn't plan on it." Alfred grabbed Arthur's jeans and walked him backwards by the fridge. "Watch your step," he said when he pushed Arthur through a door.

Arthur looked over his shoulder when his legs hit something, then Alfred pushed him down on his bed. Arthur watched as Alfred pulled off his jacket, and he smiled.

"Do you like dirty talk?" Alfred asked when he pulled off his shirt, and Arthur's smile slipped.

"Don't ruin this."

"Okay." Alfred crawled onto the bed and tugged Arthur's tie loose. "You should've changed after work."

"I was a bit short on time," Arthur said as he unbuttoned his shirt. "You'll have to give me a pass on that one."

"I'll give you a bit more than that." Alfred touched his lips to Arthur's and traveled south, brushing his lips down Arthus's neck, down his chest, to where he lingered by Arthur's stomach. Arthur looked down and Alfred smiled back at him, excited and eager.

Arthur thanked god for coffee shops.

* * *

A low rumble stirred Arthur awake. He didn't open his eyes while he tried to identify the sound, instead choosing to remain in bed where it was warm. He was naked under the blankets, and he had no interest in going out where it was cold. He pulled the blanket up to his chin and stretched his toes, then noticed the weight on his side.

Arthur opened his eyes to the blinding green numbers of an alarm clock that was not his, in a bed that wasn't his, in a house that he didn't know. He shut his eyes slowly and massaged them with his index finger and thumb. He opened them again and squinted at the clock. The numbers swayed and sharpened into 3:47, and Arthur sighed.

Arthur touched the arm draped over his side and slipped it off behind him. The blanket followed, and Arthur sat up carefully. Alfred groaned and rolled over. Arthur smiled.

Separating his clothes from Alfred's was going to be a problem. Underwear and shirts were strewn on the floor, more a lot more than the two of them had shed the night before, and Arthur started picking through the mess. He tossed aside four shirts that weren't his and found his underwear poking out from under a nightstand. He knelt down and reached farther under to pull out a pair of jeans that weren't his. He tossed them behind him with a sigh and Alfred snorted. The bed shifted and creaked, blankets rubbed against blankets, and Alfred moaned, long and loud. Arthur chuckled under his breath and reached for a piece of fabric under the bed.

"Are you leaving?" Alfred's words were lost in a yawn. He covered his mouth with a fist and propped himself up on his elbow.

Arthur pulled his slacks out from under the bed and turned around. Alfred squinted at him, his face only visible because of the alarm clock's light, and Arthur found it hard to nod. "I have work in five hours. I can't show up in dirty clothes."

Alfred nodded and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand. He pointed at a door on the far wall, by the kitchen if Arthur's memory was correct. "We can wash 'em."

Arthur laughed. "I teach teenagers. I think they'll notice if I show up in the same clothes tomorrow."

Alfred groaned and sat up. He struggled to keep his eyes open. "Will they really? They're kids." Alfred waved his hand in the direction of his closet. "I have a couple ties in there. Pants all look the same, and you can have two of the same shirt, y'know?"

Arthur stared at the clothes in his arms, then glanced at the door to the bathroom. "I suppose it could work."

"Cool." Alfred pushed off from his bed to get to his feet and open the bathroom door. The washing machine and drier were on the other side against the wall, and he staggered to the former. Arthur searched for his shirt before he followed Alfred in.

"So just put those inside the front, and I'll get... this stuff." Alfred pulled out the chemical compartment and dumped in detergent and fabric softener while Arthur shoved his clothes in. He played with the buttons on the machine, then clapped Arthur on the back when it beeped and started to fill with water. He didn't take his hand away from Arthur, instead massaging his fingers where Arthur's neck met his shoulders. He leaned over and rested his head on Arthur's shoulder, then shut his eyes.

"Can we go back t' bed now?"

Arthur turned into Alfred and pressed their lips together. Alfred opened his mouth lazily and smiled into the kiss.

"That sounds good." Arthur whispered. "Really good."

* * *

Arthur broke the yolk of his egg on toast when a loud buzz called his attention towards the bathroom. "Was that the drier?"

Alfred nodded. "Sadly."

"What?" Arthur squinted at Alfred in confusion, then remembered that he had pulled on one of Alfred's shirts after his shower. He tugged at the collar and Alfred stared at him. "I could always come back and try this on again."

"I'm more than okay with that," Alfred said. "You busy tonight?"

Arthur smiled and shook his head. "Not for you."


End file.
